Information Futures SOC

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has stated that a key enabler of its strategic intent is to ‘seize the opportunities of technology and data to become a world leader in policing’ by:

• rising to the challenge of a fast-moving digital-driven age
• harnessing data and using advanced technologies to its advantage in the pursuit of criminals
• making information and insight more accessible internally and externally, to support evidence-based decisions and to promote public confidence
• enhancing its global reputation for excellence and expertise in policing.

The remit of the Information Futures (IF) programme is to transform the MPS into a data-driven organisation in support of this strategic direction. This programme will deliver the cultural, organisational and technology changes needed to value and utilise data as an organisational asset, managing what the MPS does with data based on achieving public-facing policing outcomes for Londoners and visitors to our city, and doing so in an ethical and cost–effective way.

The programme team is proposing to take a phased and agile approach to delivering the programme and achieving its objectives, prioritising the delivery of new capabilities and using pilots and data innovation to trial, learn from and inform new ways of working with data.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to:

• Approve the Information Futures programme to progress to the next tranche of delivery in line with the vision, scope and anticipated benefits presented in this Strategic Outline Case.
• Approve the funding of £3m revenue from the Major Change Fund and £0.7m capital fully funded in the MOPAC approved capital plan to deliver the next tranche to Outline Business Case of the Information Futures programme.
• In relation to the capital and revenue budgets above, approve initiation of procurement and award of either new or call off Contracts by competitive tender from existing pre-competed MPS or Crown Commercial Framework Agreements, to ensure best value and compliance with EU Public Procurement Regulations.
• Approve delegation to the Commercial Director to approve 4 commercial lots for Information Futures with a combined total not exceeding £3.7m.

1. Introduction and background

1.1. The Information Futures programme will provide an enterprise-wide approach to data quality, compliance, management and analytical insight. It recognises that data is the key to effective investment and sound deployment strategies based on predictive analytics and confident decision-making on the front line.

2. Issues for consideration

2.1. The MPS has committed to a number of ambitious programmes that will need Information Futures data capabilities to fully realise their benefits. Information Futures will set the strategic approach and requirements for how data flows through the end to end policing process ensuring that individual systems are not developed without consideration of a core MPS wide data framework. The IF programme will develop this framework.

2.2. The MPS is currently addressing its compliance challenges, as documented by the Information Commissioner’s Office, and meeting new challenges presented by changing data legislation. Through the IF programme MPS systems infrastructure as well as data policies and governance will be enhanced to enable it to become fully compliant.

2.3. This programme presents a real opportunity to work with the Public and our Partners in developing a consistent framework that meets ethical and legal requirements. It also presents an opportunity to consider how to make more effective use of data; how to make decisions to achieve better policing outcomes and how to become more open about sharing the right data with the public and our partners.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. Funding of £3m revenue will come from the Major Change Fund to progress detailed design of the required people, organisational, process and technology changes.

3.2. Funding of £0.7m capital will be drawn from the budgeted £5m in the MOPAC approved capital plan to progress design of a data archive which will enable the release of £6.5m of savings p.a. through the decommissioning of MiPS legacy systems.

3.3. The programme plans to initiate procurement and award of either new or call off Contracts by competitive tender from existing pre-competed MPS or Crown Commercial Framework Agreements, to ensure best value and compliance with EU Public Procurement Regulations. Delegation to the Commercial Director is requested to approve 4 commercial lots for Information Futures with a combined total not exceeding £3.7m.

4. Legal Comments

4.1. The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) is a contracting authority as defined in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (the Regulations). All awards of public contracts for goods and/or services valued at £181,302 or above will be procured in accordance with the Regulations.

4.2. Development of the Information Futures programme will take account of relevant data protection legislation including the Data Protection Act 2018, the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Human Rights Act 1998. This programme is expected to contribute to MPS improved compliance with this legislation. The Information Assurance and Information Rights units will be consulted on the design of Information Futures initiatives at all stages.

5. GDPR and Data Privacy

5.1. The IF programme will ensure that its constituent projects comply with the Data Protection Act 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other Data Protection and privacy legislation.

5.2. In consultation with the Information Assurance and Information Rights units within MPS it is considered that at this stage a DPIA is not required for the Information Futures programme as no requirements for personal data processing have been identified.

5.3. However where constituent IF projects use or process personally identifiable information the IF programme will re-visit the issue of a specific DPIA in accordance with established processes in conjunction with the MPS Information Rights Unit and MPS Data Protection Officer to ensure that any purposes for additional processing, any issues of consent that need to be resolved or any privacy notices that need to be adjusted will be dealt with in a way that it is clear and transparent.

6. Equality Comments

6.1. Diversity and Inclusion have been consulted on the potential impacts of the Information Futures programme, noting that these could be positive or negative. Detailed Equality Impact Assessments will be submitted with project business cases developed for the next stage of approvals for the Information Futures programme. Equality Impact Assessments will include any Diversity and Inclusion considerations relating to the introduction of future technologies as well as considering how to attract and retain data talent in the MPS.

7. Background/supporting papers

7.1. None